


Two Spoons of Sugar

by orphan_account



Category: One Piece
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Baristas, Coffee Shops, Implied Relationships, M/M, law is a doctor and a writer, luffy is a barista
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-27
Updated: 2019-09-11
Packaged: 2020-09-27 19:42:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,927
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20413261
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: He comes here every day. For a perfectly good reason. You can't seriously expect him to find inspiration without a nice cup of coffee can you?It had absolutely nothing to do with the fact that the barista behind the counter was fucking gorgeous.





	1. Introductions

**Author's Note:**

> HELLO! Once upon a time, I had an older account on here where I wrote a fic about Law and Luffy finding coffee shop love in a modern setting. 
> 
> I completely abandoned that story...but it was written SO horribly so I don’t feel that bad. However, here comes my redemption arc; I am going to place it upon my gay little shoulders to COMPLETELY rewrite the first few chapters of what was Black Coffee, Two Spoonfuls of Sugar (now under a new name) and continue on the legacy. It was something I was excited to write, but completely lost interest in over time. Happens to everyone! I hope I can regain an old and new audience with this fic, so please enjoy the first chapter!

* * *

He comes here every day. For a perfectly good reason. You can't seriously expect him to find inspiration without a nice cup of coffee can you?

It had absolutely nothing to do with the fact that the barista behind the counter was fucking gorgeous.

Okay, maybe that was the biggest reason he came here every day.

Which was the perfect invitation for his friends to tease him once they found out the truth. 

“Why don't you just ask him for his number?” Penguin said this with such confidence, which is what Law wished he had. It's not like he hadn't considered it. It'd be easy, too. Just a quick walk to the front and he could do it. There's also the possibility that he'd embarrass himself and get kicked out, which would suck ass. He had a pretty good routine going on. 

He comes to the coffee shop. He orders the same thing. Black coffee, two spoonfuls of sugar. Sometimes a chocolate scone if he had been too preoccupied to make his own breakfast. To him, having a clean shaven face is more important than wasting time trying to open and eat a few granola bars. And no way in hell would he make toast.

He sits at the same table by the same window, with a perfect view of the counter. If he only looked up every few seconds it wouldn't seem too creepy. He wasn't a stalker, not at all. There was nothing weird about going to the coffee shop every morning and writing. 

Even though he's a doctor, and a damn good one at that, probably best in the state, Law loves to write. He's been doing it since a very young age. Started helping his father write medical reports when he was six, and even went through a superhero phase and made his own little comic books which had long since been destroyed. Law uses writing as a way to cope with stress, and he's even shared some of his stories with the rest of the world. He’s learned the hard way that people on the Internet can be either the sweetest person you’ve ever met, or a complete asshole. A few of his reviews come from people who are more than likely douches with their fingers shoved so far up their assholes they can't manage a coherent thought.

Oh well. It didn’t matter either way to him. He liked sharing his writing, because he was proud of it. At first he was hesitant, arguing that absolutely no one would give a single fuck about anything he wrote. But a nudge in the right direction from friends and family convinced him. 

And he's got fans, he knows that. People actually read his shit, and apparently they like it. He wished they'd stop asking to meet him, because he's not too eager at the thought of meeting a possible serial killer. Still, it was nice to know that he wasn't actually that fucking bad at something he loved to do. 

Heart surgeries don't really count, he supposed. That's what he got money off of. Sure it was fun, but it was dangerous too. Not because of the sharp objects he surrounded himself with every day, or the possibility of losing a patient and feeling the wrath of their loved ones. Those were all sweet blessings compared to having an actual fire hazard as a nurse. Sometimes he wondered how Rocinante even managed to get a job like that in the first place. 

Law supposed he couldn't really complain. Rocinante had been the one to bring him into his home when he had no one else to turn to. Traumatic memories he didn’t like to linger on. The man was like a father to him. He was like a guardian angel sent to watch over him. A crummy, clumsy angel that trips over the air and always catches fire every five minutes. 

Law grabbed his coffee and took a long gulp, ignoring the fact that it had gotten cold from negligence. He had an awful habit of getting lost in his thoughts, and if he let himself he could do it for hours. There was no way that was healthy, but it was fine when he was alone. Out in public he tried not to do it too often. He looked at the screen of his laptop and sighed. Two words stared back at him, and after being here for God knows how long that was all he wrote. 

_‘He’s cute’_

Law was about to call it a night when he felt a gentle tap on his shoulder. He knew it had to be one of the employees, so he shook his head and said, “Yeah, yeah it’s closing time. I know I’m leaving.” 

”Oh, well that makes my job easier! Thanks.”

Law paused, mid motion of turning to grab the bag he always brought in with him. God...that voice. It may have sounded like sandpaper and helium had a weird lovechild, but at the same time it was so soothing. He could never get over how breathtaking this guy was. A quick motion to turn around left Law face to face with the person he’s not been able to stop thinking about for months. Those deep brown eyes of his mesmerized him, and Law had to pinch himself under the table to keep from staring for an uncomfortable amount of time. 

He always practiced their first proper meeting in his head. Sure, he sees the guy all the time. They made eye contact once and Law thought he’d have a heart attack on the spot. He wanted the first time he introduced himself to be special, meaningful. He wanted angels to sing and birds to fly out of a golden cage. Something cheesy like that. Every time Law tried to walk up to the barista, someone else got in the way. 

The guy had a lot of friends who came in just about every day to visit, and they were a weird bunch. He counted about eight of them, all varying ages. One was a girl with red hair, and at first Law thought the two were dating given how close they acted. She’d sit at the bar and they’d talk forever, and he swore one time he saw them hug for longer than normal. But that theory was debunked when the girl came in one day with her arm draped over another girl with blue hair, calling her pet names and giving her kisses. 

And if it weren’t his friends getting in the way, it was his family. The coffee shop was owned by an old grouch named Garp, which is how the place got its name. He only hired family, and that happened to be his three grandsons. Those were the shops only employees, which Law supposed made sense for a small place like this. The barista had two (older?) brothers who were around him all the time. It was impossible for Law to even get a second of alone time with him. 

But as if whatever Gods existed were smiling down upon him out of pity here he was, face to face with Mr. Sunshine himself. A lump formed in Law’s throat as words became caught there. Why was he getting nervous? He had practiced this so many times and he had the AUDACITY to get nervous? 

“I’m sorry,” he finally managed to squeeze out, turning away to finish packing up his laptop. He downed the rest of his now freezing coffee and tossed it into the trash next to his table. “I didn’t realize how late it was.”

“It’s okay, really. I almost didn’t wanna bother you, you were so deep in thought. But jiji wouldn’t like it if I let a customer stay even a minute after closing time. I’ll make it up to you next when you come in tomorrow, how about that? I’m Luffy by the way!”

This guy sure was talkative. Not that it really bothered him...he could talk to this guy forever. But he didn’t want to get Luffy...finally, he had a name to that pretty face. Anyway, he didn’t want to get Luffy in trouble or anything. 

“You don’t need to make anything up to me. I understand, it’s alright. Have a nice night.” Law was halfway out the door when he heard Luffy call out to him, and he felt a blush creep onto his face. He turned and Luffy was standing a bit closer than he should have been.

When did it get so hot in here?

“You know, you come here every day with that laptop. Ordering coffee and stuff. And it got me really curious. Are you a writer?”

Guy was smarter than he looked.

“Uh...yeah.” That was all he managed to get out before he was out of the door and calling a cab. It was clear Luffy wasn't ready for the conversation to end, but Christ if Law had stayed any longer he'd get hotter than molten lava.

Law wasn't very good at the whole 'love' thing. Sure, he's screwed around a bit. But prostitutes that charged 30$ an hour didn't really count as love. He wasn't sure he'd ever actually fall in love. Truthfully, he was sure of it, because honestly he deemed himself incapable. 

That is, until a few months ago. The new coffee shop opened up, and everyone wanted to see if it'd be any good. Law saw the joint as the perfect place to get some work done, so the first day it officially opened he found himself in the midst of an all-too-eager coffee loving crowd. The coffee was above average, not as strong as he liked. It tasted like okay shit. The atmosphere was way too welcoming, and he had a feeling the place would always be crowded. 

All in all, it wasn't somewhere he'd want to spend his time. 

He remembered everything that had happened that day. After he got his coffee, and made his way to the only available seat in the store, some moss headed idiot knocked into him from behind and made him spill his coffee. Law was ready to turn around and show the guy why he had 'DEATH' tattooed on his fingers when a loud sigh caught his attention. 

“Man, I'm gonna have to clean this up. Ace, where's the mop, can you get it! Hey, you didn't get any on you did you?”

When Law turned around he hadn't expected to come face-to-face with the literal embodiment of perfection. That may be a little exaggerated to some people, but you can't fake that much perfect. 

A flush rose to Law's face as he struggled to find his voice, and the barista just laughed and picked up the cup. He dumped it in the trash can and that was that.

That was when his entire world changed. It took him a while to realize what he felt for Luffy was some form of love. He feels like he's in some cheesy romance movie sometimes but like fuck he cares. 

His whole life he's been cursed with tragedies, shit he didn't deserve to go through, that he wished he could just permanently erase from his mind. Yet now, some higher power has obviously started feeling sorry for him. A bit late to the pity party, but Law couldn't find himself to complain. Especially not when his little slice of pure happy comes with a goofy smile and an out of place straw hat.


	2. His Decision

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So for the first four chapters I’m going to include some text from the old story, because most of it was pretty good. But I’m going to add on and change things around as well. After that it’ll be all brand new stuff
> 
> Enjoy this next chapter <3

Ace never wanted to move here. He had told Sabo and Luffy that about a million times, that he didn't understand why they'd have to leave Foosha for a place like New World. Sabo always told him he'd get over it eventually. Luffy didn't see the big deal.

Sure, he'd miss his friends. What few he had. But to him, this was like a whole new chapter in his life! He'd have the chance to make new friends, see what a big fancy pants city had to offer him. Maybe he'd finally get his own room!

Their grandpa Garp bought a reasonably large house in a reasonably large neighborhood filled with reasonably nice people. Luffy got his own bedroom, as he had wanted. In fact they all did. Ace was still grumbling about moving, and added on the fact that he was way old enough for his own place, him and Sabo both. But when he saw how big his room was he stopped complaining as much. They had to share a bathroom though, because gramps' room was the only one with an attached potty house. Other than that Luffy had no problem with the living arrangements.

They had an agreed upon schedule every morning (actually, to be fair, they didn't get a say in what time Garp would be rolling them out of bed. If Luffy got to decide they'd be asleep until two in the afternoon). The first instance the boys heard about this somewhat unfair schedule was opening day of the shop, when gramps went to them individually and tore their sheets off, leaving them bare and cold at eight in the morning.

Of course Ace had to open his big mouth and complain, so now they have to get up at seven every morning.

Luffy got used to it though. He had no reason to stay up real late so he just went to bed around nine every night.

But he had a reason for getting up.

He had made lots of friends fairly quickly. His brothers tell him he’s always had a friendly attitude and that’s why people gravitate towards him so easily, but he never thought much about it. He had his own group of friends that came and visited him when they could, and on his days off they’d run around town in Franky’s huge yellow and orange van he called the Thousand Sunny. Said him and his brother Iceburg saved it from a junkyard together and fixed it up, but couldn’t decide on a name. So Franky’s girlfriend Robin named it. Luffy liked the choice. 

He had his own reason for liking each member of the crew. Zoro’s a real badass and that's all that needs to be said. His boyfriend Sanji is a wonderful cook, and makes lunch for them when he can. Nami can be mean sometimes but it’s for their own good; she’s the strict one, and it’s nice to have one in every group. Franky was an awesome engineer, building cool robots and pimping out cars all the time. Luffy would kill to own one of Franky’s cola powered bikes, but they’re still a work in progress. Usopp and him bonded over their dislike of coffee, and he’s also a really good artist. Robin is like a mom friend and Luffy’s always wanted one of those. Chopper is like the little brother of the group, you can’t hate him. Plus his reindeer hat is cool. And Brook was once a famous musician, retiring and moving to New World after getting tired of the stress it caused him. But sometimes he still played for them and Luffy loved it. 

All of that was great, because moving to a new town wasn't fun without meeting new people.But there was another reason he didn't care about getting up so early, and if his brothers ever found out he would never hear the end of it.

See, there was this...guy. He came into the coffee shop literally every day. He sat at a table near the window facing the counter, and ordered the same thing; a black coffee with two spoonfuls of sugar. He always brought his laptop with him, and seemed to be doing something very important on it.

The first time Luffy met him he ended up cleaning his spilled coffee. That was entirely Zoro's fault, but he was glad it happened.

He had a feeling if the guy ever came back in he’d instantly be able to recognize him. It’s hard to mimick a style that cool. His arms and hands were littered with tattoos, the ones that stood out the most being these large cirlce things covered in spikes. They had to have some meaning to them, Luffy was sure. He also had the word ‘DEATH’ on each set of knuckles which was so freaking metal. Usually he wears shirts that cover his chest but one day he came in wearing one that was kind of low cut, and Luffy could barely make out some kind of heart shaped chest tattoo. 

He had this aura about him that screamed “Don’t mess with me if you know what’s good for you” and Luffy respected and admired people like that.

He spent weeks trying to figure out how to approach this strange man. He could have went about his normal way to try and make friends with him right off the bat, but something kept him from it. He felt like maybe that'd be too much for this cool guy, so he waited for the right moment.

Eventually it came.

It was closing time, and the store was empty save for this tattooed guy. Luffy knew if he didn't kick him out someone more aggressive would. Besides, now was his chance! He had kind of been practicing how he would walk up and introduce himself to the guy, but he never got a chance to talk to him. Every time he decided to go for it the guy was already gone and Sabo was cleaning his table. So no way in hell would he take advantage of this opportunity! 

They made idle conversation, nothing to really brag about. He introduced himself but unfortunately didn’t catch the guys name. And his assumption about this guy being a writer was correct, which Luffy mentally pat himself on the back for guessing right. They didn’t talk long, much to Luffy’s dismay, because he had been so excited to get to know this mystery man. 

The dude seemed to be in a rush, and besides that it was closing time. Gramps didn’t really like it if customers stayed longer than they were supposed to, so really it was for their own good. Still...maybe he could try again tomorrow. 

All of that happened a few hours ago, and he’s been cooped up in his room since. Apart from eating dinner, which he scarfed down as quick as he could so he could be alone with his thoughts, no bothersome brothers to...well, bother him. Luffy sat up in his bed with a huff, swinging his legs over the edge and grabbing his phone. A text from the crews groupchat popped up, and he smiled but decided to ignore it. He could talk to them later, and besides it was probably just Sanji and Zoro bickering again. 

For two people who were supposed to be so in love, they sure did fight a lot. 

He stood up and stretched, only just realzing when he looked at the clock on his wall that it was way later than he thought. It was ten minutes past twelve and Luffy couldn’t believe he had been laying in bed just _thinking _for three hours. Gramps was definitely asleep by now, and maybe Ace and Sabo were but it was hard to tell with those two. He thought about venturing out into the house, maybe to get a midnight snack or sneak to his each of his brothers’ room’s for any info on their personal lives (they both rarely every talked about what’s been going on in their own world since moving here. At least Luffy had introduced his friends) but eventually decided against it. 

He supposed he should try to go to sleep, because he’d definitely regret it in the morning. So he tore off his work clothes apart from the boxer briefs underneath, switched his bedroom light off and slid right back under the covers. 

Luffy lay there trying to fall asleep when he turned over, a very specific thought keeping him awake. He had no idea what this guy’s name was, therefore he had no way to address him in the future. He had to call him something, it’d be so weird and awkward to shout out “Hey you!” from across the store. 

He thought about the tattoos littering the guys body, and idly wondered if he had any more that weren’t visible. A blush painted across Luffy’s cheeks and he huffed at his own thoughts. Then his mouth formed into a small ‘o’ when realization hit him like a ton of bricks. Why didn’t he just call him Tattoo Guy! Not many people came in that looked like him, so it was a unique name and very accurate!

It was a unanimous decision. Luffy inquired Luffy, who was more than pleased with the outcome, and the two shook on it. Shaking his own hands was starting to get a little weird. He had to get a bear or something. But after he was pleased with himself he finally managed to drift off, looking very forward to getting woken up later in the morning. 


	3. You Can Do It

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you all enjoy this new chapter! Please point out any grammar mistakes y’all might see, as I’m writing this on my phone and that makes it hard to spot them myself! ^^

“Man, you look like you haven't slept in days.”

Law paused, his hand hovering over the hot water nozzle. Couldn't a guy use the shitter without someone bothering him? 

It was bad enough that he barely got any kind of break, even long enough to do something as simple as use the restroom. Just because he could perform a heart transplant better than most of the other so called ‘doctors’ at this place, didn’t mean he had to do every single one. Or every surgery for that matter. At least it felt that way to him. 

So this guy better have a good reason to bother him during such a rare moment of bliss. 

“Shachi, have you got some kind of obsession with my health? First it was 'oh you should eat more than half a salad for lunch, have a hot dog' even though you know I'm vegetarian. Then it was 'you haven't taken a shit since yesterday morning, are you constipated?' Now, once you follow me into the bathroom and have successfully heard me take a dump, you bother me about my sleeping schedule. It's starting to get a little creepy. Besides, I’m a grown man. I can take care of myself.”

His red headed companion sighed, shaking his head and letting out an obnoxious chuckle. “It's a good thing that I care so much. You have to realize that people do actually love you, Law. Bitch all you want but there's no way you'll ever get rid of me or anyone else.”

He sounds really proud about it.

“Don't act as if I actually want to destroy any shred of happiness I have left.“ He finally turns on the water, scrubbing the now partially dissolved soap off of his fingers. “Normal people don't obsess over someone else's diet and bowel movements, in case you weren't aware. Between you and Cora-san, I'm surprised I can actually manage to get a good nights rest. Penguin worries too, which is nice. But Christ at least he lets me breath.”

“I've noticed a bit of a change in you, dude.” Shachi chose to completely ignore everything Law had said and jump straight to his own point. “Ever since you started going to that Garp's Coffee House or whatever. That barista has had a huge effect on your everyday life, and whether that's a good or a bad thing has yet to be decided.”

At the mention of Luffy, Law once again paused his hygienic assault on his hands, letting the water run out of the faucet and down the drain. Conservatives and environmentalists would no doubt have his head for wasting so much water but he couldn't bring himself to actually fucking care.

He tried not to talk about Luffy too much in front of...well, anyone. Personal shit like that was no ones business apart from his own. He was still trying to figure out how the barista fit under personal business...

“You've been beating around the bush for too long. Just ask him out.”

“You sound like Penguin.”

”Hey man, you can’t blame us for trying to help you with this. You’ve always been bad with relationships, and it’d be nice to see you with someone you like for once. And you seem to _really _like this guy. I mean,” Shachi dug his hands into his pockets, leaning against the wall next to the sink. “We can’t have a normal day around here without you bringing him up.”

”...I rarely bring him up-“

”’This coffee doesn’t taste as good as Luffy’s’, ‘Nurse Baby has a scar on her cheek just like Luffy!!!’, ‘Do you think Luffy likes public access shows’, ‘Would Luffy accept my love if I brought him a still beating heart-‘“

“What, why would I say that-”

“I wouldn't be surprised. My point is, you gotta get going while the going is still good, if you catch my drift?”

Law's hands were dripping water onto the floor. A puddle had formed underneath of him, spreading towards his shoes. There were paper towels in the dispenser, plenty enough to dry his hands. 

He wiped them on his jeans, leaving wet streaks on the fabric, and turned to leave the bathroom, not waiting to see if his friend would follow.

Of course Shachi would follow. The sound of boots clamping against the tiled hospital floor verified this. An arm was thrown over his shoulder, and Law was half tempted to reach into his coat pocket and grab the gel pen laying neatly inside, only to stab the other in the hand. But he decided against it. 

It may ruin his favorite pen.

“Look, I’ll cut to the chase,” Oh? Had he not done that already? “I’ve been to that coffee place. I wanted to see what kind of guy my friend was swooning over, and I gotta admit, he’s pretty cute. In fact, he’s too cute.”

“Shachi, you better wrap this up. I’ve got an important appointment concerning a ten year olds heart transplant and someone needs to be at my office to greet the grieving parents. I’d rather it be me instead of Cora-san...”

They turned a corner and paused at a water fountain directly in front of one of the second floor nurses stations, and Law ignored their hellos and annoying swooning. He had a reputation for being ‘the most attractive doctor’ at the hospital, on top of basically being better than all of the other ones. It gained him some enemies but he could care less.

They were just staying long enough for Shachi to finish his point. 

“First off, I will say I seriously doubt you’ve got any competition in the ladies department.” That statement threw Law off a bit, because this whole time he had just assumed maybe Luffy was into girls. You couldn’t blame him for thinking that. Besides the usual eight and Red Head’s blue haired lady friend, there were other people Luffy had become acquainted with and most of them were girls. 

“He's got all these big breasted beauties coming in and out of the place all day long, and he never gives them a second glance! I saw Boa Hancock go in there the other day and he barely even looked at her! Just took her order and acted like she wasn't there! Oh, the humanity, I nearly fainted!”

Normally, Law would scoff at Shachi's over exaggeration, but Hancock was no scoff-worthy manner. There are people who have compared her charming beauty to that of the Greek goddess Aphrodite, when really she was more like Medusa. Unless you were a straight woman or a gay man, there's no way you'd squirm out of falling "under her charm." All things he's been told, because honestly he didn't think she was all that pretty. 

Law chose not to comment on that and continued walking, again ignoring the nurses as they passed the station and continued on down the hall towards his office. 

“There’s no way the guy is into chicks. If you ask my opinion you’ve got a solid chance, dude. That is if you don’t take into account the other competition. Girls aren’t the only ones falling for his charm, y’know. There's plenty of people lookin' to snag someone like that. Like Kid-”

Law snorted. Actually god damn snorted. “You're joking.” That was almost enough to get him rolling on the floor. He had too much dignity for that. “I thought Kid was sleepin' with what'shisface? Killer? Last time I saw them they were pretty close to each other. Disgustingly so. No way Kid'd wanna sleep with Luffy when he's banging someone else.”

The two came to a halt at the end of the hall, and Shachi leaned against the wall next to Law's office. Law knew they'd both kill for a fucking fag, but there were rules to be followed, and enforced. He'd wait til lunch break to ruin his lungs some more. 

“Yeah, they're pretty close. Kinda like Siamese twins.” Law couldn't help but mentally picture the two connected at the hip, or maybe the head. Naturally or surgically so. It was ammusing. “But ya never know, hm? Kid isn't the only potential cherry popper you gotta compete against.”

“Christ, do you have to say it like that?” His hand twitched, fighting the urge to reach for the carton of cigarettes in his pocket. It was a bad habit he picked up from Cora-san, somewhere around his sophomore year of high school. He had scolded him for it, which Law was quick to bite back about him being no better and ‘It’s my body I can put whatever I want in it old man’. 

“No point in beating around the bush. I’m serious about this, man. Peng and I both are. We just want to see you happy again, and we think this Luffy guy is just what you need.” There was sincerity in Shachi’s eyes, a very rare sight that shouldn’t be taken lightly.

Law sighed, but before he could respond a voice from inside his office interrupted their conversation, which he was happy to put to an end, and Law idly wondered how long the voice had known they were standing out and talking. He grumbled to himself and straightened the collar of his white coat, giving Shachi a look that indicated they were done talking. 

The red head smiled and put up his hands in understanding, not leaving until Law was inside his office. He was met with an annoyed looking nurse and even more annoyed looking parents, and Law mentally kicked himself for ending up being the one who was late.

“Apologies for being late. I believe we can begin any time you’d like.” While he sat through having to hear three people simultaneously berate him for taking so long to show up, Law couldn’t stop thinking about his talk with Shachi. ‘You gotta get going while the going was still good.’

Maybe he really should stop being such a pussy about this.

* * *

Law had done a lot of stupid shit in his lifetime. But this was probably eligible for the top five.

Asking out the guy you’ve been crushing on for months in a crowded coffee shop in front of not only his friends probably, but also his buff and sometimes intimidating looking brothers. How could it go wrong? 

Actually, Law didn’t want to think about that. It would ruin his mood and he’d chicken out, doomed to repeat the process of pining from afar and gaining the courage to ask Luffy out all over again. Today would be the day, nerves be damned. 

He stood in line patiently, tapping away on his phone and trying to maintain his train of thought while he waited for his turn to order. The people in front of him were taking their sweet time, but it didn’t matter. He had all the time in the world. He kept rehearsing in his head how he was going to ask Luffy. So far, all bad. 

“SABO! Stop talking to your girlfriend and go bust those tables, I told you little shits when one of you is out we work extra hard!” The stores owner Garp was waving a sanitized cloth around in his fist, and Law glanced over to where aforementioned grandson was standing and talking to a brunette at a corner table. 

At the mention of someone being out for the day Law’s shoulders tensed up, but he kept hope that it wasn’t Luffy. It made sense to let them take some days off, but it would be a cruel joke on the universes part if his big day became ruined. 

Someone cleared their throat. Law turned and met ebony eyes. Not as warm as he would have liked, and disappointment painted his face. 

Universe, you are but a cruel and awful son of a bitch. 

“Black, two sugars?” Ace's voice was strong and expectant, not soft and friendly. Law almost felt threatened. 

“Excuse me?” His own voice was strained. 

“That's what you normally get when you come in, right? You're in here like every day, I picked up on it from watching Luffy take your order.” Ace grabbed the largest choice of cup they had, scribbling the order on the plastic. He handed it to Sabo, who had apparently come up to the register without Law noticing. The blonde immediately moved to start on the doctors order, ignoring his grandpas instructions to clean the dining room. 

Law went back to his quiet self as he scooted away to let the person behind him order. He felt a knot form in his stomach as reality set in. He had been so ready to do this, had prepared and practiced on multiple occasions. And the day he finally got enough balls to ask Luffy out, following encouraging yet threatening words from friends, the guy isn’t even working and he looks like an idiot standing in the middle of the coffee shop not moving an inch. 

Eventually he came to his senses when he heard Sabo call out his order. He grabbed it and gave a half hearted ‘thank you’, making his way out the door, because there was no point in staying. Or being there at all for that matter. His plan was ruined and he just wanted to go back to his apartment and seek comfort in his chow chow. 

It was a dumb thing to be upset about, because Law could always carry out his plan the next day. But it was more so the principal that mattered, and Law didn’t even know if he would be able to do it the next day. He grumbled and stuffed his phone in his pocket, holding out his hand for a cab. 

While waiting for one to stop, a flash of orange caught his eye and Law looked ahead of him. At the stop light sat a bright orange and yellow van, the words ‘THOUSAND SUNNY’ spray painted on the side next to a cartoony drawing of a lion. It was the ugliest fucking thing he had ever seen. 

The front windows were rolled down and Law could see the inhabitants inside. In the passenger seat, to his surprise, was a familiar face with a head of green hair. And at the drivers seat was this buff guy with blue hair and a ton of tattoos, seemingly talking to someone in the back seats. 

Green hair slowly turned and they made eye contact, and Law was taken aback by the guys smile. He turned to tell someone in the back seat something but the van drove off before Law was able to figure out what it was. 

It was perfect timing, as a cab had pulled up just as the Mystery Machine left. Law climbed inside and gave the guy his address, pulling out his phone to avoid any other kind of conversation. 

To no surprise at all the group chat he had set up with Penguin and Shachi was filled with them asking if Law had ‘done the thing’. Law texted a half hearted recap of what happened, and rolled his eyes at Penguins reply. 

> _F in the chat boys 😔👊 we’ll get em next time_

The rest of the ride home Law was silent, staring out of the cabbie window with Mozart playing in his ear buds. It had been a rough, disappointing day, and he hoped to whatever higher power was listening tomorrow would be better. 


	4. Confrontation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this chapter is a bit different, but I really wanted to give the rest of the Straw Hats some kinda introduction (even though it was mostly Zoro lmao) 
> 
> And sorry if some parts (like the ending) seem rushed, I just really wanted to get this chapter done and out of the way. Hope you enjoyed it nonetheless!

“Look! My rock went the furthest, did you see Robin? A~ll the way across the pond!”

“Oh wow that’s incredible! Have you been practicing, Chopper? It went even further than Luffy’s.”

The young male smiled, proud of himself for his small accomplishment. From behind him, Luffy puffed up in annoyance, even if it didn’t really bother him all that much. Friendly games like this never really got too competitive; they were just to have fun, when the whole crew got together. 

All nine of them were hanging out at Zoro’s house, a common get together place for them. It was only because out of the whole group he had the best yard to play in. His father used to own a weapons shop, and at one point in his youth had traveled the world to find unique furniture for his home. That included outdoor seating, and decorations as well. Their backyard was land as far as the eye could see, so you never got bored. 

They had a garden that Zoro’s adoptive sister took care of, and right next to it was Zoro’s favorite part of the yard. He had always adored the little pond, so Luffy’s been told. It made for great rock skipping games, and the bridge that ran across it was nice to sit at and relax. Zoro said he used the area to meditate, and even work on his sword techniques. 

He had a pretty cool hobby, if Luffy was being honest. 

But despite that, Zoro’s been trying to move out. He started college, along with Luffy, Sanji, Usopp and Nami, and has been itching to get his own place. His father is supportive, and even encourages it, but dropping everything to move out all of the sudden is pretty hard. That’s one reason Luffy still lives with his grandpa and brothers, but he’s been getting this irking feeling that Ace and Sabo won’t be at home for much longer. 

He didn’t blame them. They’ve been living in New World for almost a year now, and he’s surprised they lasted this long. 

“Hey guys,” the group at the pond turned to find Nami walking towards them, a tray of drinks in hand. She smiled and handed them out, tucking the now empty tray under her arm and leaning against the bridges railing. “A little treat from Perona. She was making lemonade anyway, so she gave us some.” 

“How nice of her.”

“It’s pink! So pretty!”

“Tell Zoro’s sister we said thanks!” Luffy had already downed his glass and wiped his face with his sleeve, giving the cup to Nami who rolled her eyes but couldn’t stop the smile on her face. “Do it yourself!” 

Luffy hopped off the bridge, making his way to another cluster of his friends that had formed by the patio. Franky had Usopp and Brook’s full attention as he showed off some pocket watch invention he had been working on, not yet ready but still cool nonetheless.

Normally Luffy would stay and gawk at is as well, but he actually wanted to head inside and look for the rest of his crew. He slid open the patio door and removed his sandals, putting on a pair of the slippers that had been sat out for them. Zoro’s sister, Perona, was at the kitchen cabinet, mixing up another batch of lemonade. When she saw him she smiled, only for a second before going back to work. 

“Thanks for the lemonade! It was delicious!” Perona acknowledged him with a smile, placing the now finished pitcher in the fridge to cool. “It was my pleasure. Like I always say, Zoro’s friends may as well be my friends.” Luffy couldn’t argue with that! That just meant new friends for him! 

“Oi, Luffy.” He turned and beamed, always happy to see Zoro’s cool expression. “Been lookin for ya. Let’s go upstairs to my room and hang while they’re outside.” 

He had been the first friend Luffy made here, even if it was accidentally. Zoro had gotten himself caught up with a bunch of punks that had him tied to a fence post, and Luffy had just happened to be in the wrong part of town at the right time. Thanks to that, the two had this weird bond that was hard to explain. Put simply, Zoro was like a brother to Luffy, and he knew the feeling was mutual. 

“You and Sanji ran off!!! You’re not hanging out without us again, are you?” Behind them Perona snorted, and Zoro shot her a sharp glare before shaking his head to answer Luffy’s question. “I was helping pops move a coffin into the basement.”

Zoro was probably the only person Luffy knew who could casually and nonchalantly say his old man slept in a coffin, and even though Mr. Dracule wasn’t a vampire (much to Luffy’s disappointment), it was pretty cool nonetheless. He always wondered how comfortable they were. 

“Eyebrows tagged along. I was surprised he’d rather hang out with me instead of Nami and Robin or my sister-“

“I thought we got past the dumb nicknames when you confessed your feelings to me, marimo head.”

Sanji appeared behind his boyfriend, a stern but playful look on his face. Zoro rolled his eyes and whipped his head around, giving a smirk before pulling the blonde over with one arm. He mumbled something about Sanji being a shit cook, and Luffy couldn’t help but laugh. 

That was far from the truth! In fact, that was how they’d met. Sometime about four months ago Luffy was forced to work as a bust boy at this restaurant in town. He didn’t have enough money to pay for his meal so the owner thought it had been a good idea to let him work off the rest of the bill. Gramps had no problem with it. 

Sanji is a waiter/cook at the Baratie, and at first they didn’t really get along. But Luffy’s charming personality wormed it’s way into Sanji’s stone cold attitude, and they started hanging out more and more. He found out just how great of a cook Sanji was, and that he was Zoro’s boyfriend, which was great! That was someone they both knew!

Along with Nami and Usopp, who had already been friends of Zoro’s when Luffy met him. Sanji had introduced him to Chopper and Robin, and in turn Robin introduced her boyfriend Franky. And Franky knew a “real cool retired musician named Brook who goes to my gym” and before he knew it all nine of them had become a group of friends. 

Luffy considered himself very lucky to get to know people like them, and even if his brothers claimed he was just too charming to not like, he was glad to have them as friends. They called themselves the Straw Hats, a name Usopp had come up with because ‘Luffy wears that thing everywhere! I think it makes for a cool group name’. And it was true; the hat he wore literally everywhere had been given to him by a family friend when he was very young, and it was something he treasured more than anything. 

To him, it was the perfect name for a group of people he loved so much. 

“Let’s go up to my room. I’ll text Robin and the rest can come up if they want,” Zoro said, his arm still wrapped around Sanji’s shoulders as the two began to ascend the stairs. Luffy yelled in agreement and bounded after them, always enjoying the trip up the victorian staircase. 

You may as well call their house a castle, because that’s what the interior looked like. Stone walls, endless hallways, and doors that seemed to lead to nowhere. To any newcomer, the house was like a maze. But growing up there, or if you had visited the place more than once, you got used to it. Luffy had no difficulty navigating the halls to Zoro’s room, and thank God for that. 

They found their way in no time, and as soon as the door was opened Luffy raced inside, throwing himself onto the bed with a chuckle. Sanji followed after, only he simply sat on the edge, grabbing a cigarette from his coat pocket and lighting it up. A bad habit Luffy could never understand. At that, Zoro took a b-line to his window, opening it up to keep the nicotine smell from lingering. 

Then he grabbed his desk chair and pulled it up to the bed, sitting down so his legs stuck out and his arms rest against the back of it. It wasn’t uncommon for the three of them to spend time alone, just them. Luffy wouldn’t necessarily say he loved them more than the others, because that definitely was not the case. He just felt like he could tell these two anything without having to worry about being teased or playfully bullied. 

“So actually,” Zoro started, swirling around to grab a flask filled with more-than-likely alcohol and back to face them in one swift motion, “I was wanting to ask you a question Luffy.” His confession came casually as he opened the flask and took a long swig. Sanji had his bad habits, and he had his. 

“Really?” Luffy sat up, curiosity oozing out of him. Sanji nodded in response. Had they brought him up here just to talk about whatever Zoro wanted to ask? Well it wasn’t like he minded it, any excuse to hang out was fine with him. “Whatcha wanna know?”

“D’you remember earlier, when we were driving up here and stopped in front of your gramps’ coffee shop?” Luffy nodded and Zoro took another swig before he continued. “I told you Mr. Tattoo guy was standing outside waiting for a cab. Is there a...reason you got all excited? Like...really excited.”

Sanji snorted and blew out a cloud of smoke, and both of them were staring at Luffy with curious yet knowing eyes. Luffy processed Zoro’s question before smiling, laughing in an attempt to hide how flustered he suddenly got. “Did you guys seriously bring me all the way up here to talk about some guy? Come on, it’s not even a big deal..!” 

“Well, normally I’d agree with you,” Sanji leaned over and put his cigarette out in the ashtray next to Zoro’s bed. “But something tells us that he’s not just ‘some guy’. When you told all of us about him you acted like you really liked the guy.”

“Don’t be shy, Luffy.” Zoro said, a small smirk on his face. “It’s okay if you’ve got a crush, you know you can tell us anything.”

Of course. Of course he could tell them anything, that’s why they were such good friends. But this was different. It was just some dumb guy...he didn’t even know how he felt about him. They barely knew each other. It was weird! Wasn’t it..?

“Mmm...you guys are being weird. I barely even know Tattoo Guy. I mean I’ve been calling him a dumb nickname cause I don’t know his real one! And I was going to try and talk to him more today until jiji said I had the day off. But there’s nothing wrong with wanting to make new friends!”

Zoro and Sanji shared a look that screamed ‘I smell bullshit’, and Sanji shook his head as he pulled out another cigarette. This time he stood up and moved to the window, blowing directly out into the open air. “Well, it’s not nice to make assumptions, I will admit that. Whatever you say, Luffy.” The two dropped their pursuit of questioning their friends love life to turn their attention onto something else. Zoro pulled out his text books and asked the two of them if they could help him study for his history test.

It wasn’t usually something they did to pass the time when hanging out, and Luffy would be no help seeing as History wasn’t really one of his best subjects, but they’d be doing it together which would make it a bit more fun. So he agreed along with Sanji, grabbing the book from Zoro to ask whatever questions had been listed out for studying purposes.

They did this for quite some time, and it beat talking about Luffy’s private life.

Now Luffy was pouting, thinking of the conversation they had had a while ago; he never did like when people tried to tell him how he felt, and he knew his friends meant no harm, but it was always something he wanted to decide for himself. And he felt like being friends with this cool guy who came into the store every day!

And maybe...he had the tiniest crush. But you can’t blame him, the dude is way too pretty for his own good, and Luffy found his mysterious demeanor very attractive. The problem was...he didn’t even know if Tattoo Guy liked boys! He’d probably just be wasting his time, and while asking never hurt anyone, he was afraid of rejection. And not necessarily a rejection of romance, but he didn’t want to just ask him ‘Nice weather we’re having, do you like boys???’ and risk losing a potentially good friend. 

He just didn’t want to make the guy uncomfortable. 

“Jeez, I didn’t realize it was getting dark.” Zoro’s exclamation snapped Luffy out of his thoughts and he looked up. Indeed it had gotten much later since they came up here, and that wouldn’t normally be a problem if he didn’t have a curfew. Another reason he wanted to move out. 

“I appreciate they help, guys. Guess it’s time to get you home, Luffy. We should make plans for your next day off instead of just coming to my house. Hopefully we can all get a day off together again.”

“Sounds good!” At least he didn’t have to read about the history of Japan anymore!

* * *

It was around ten o’clock when Franky dropped him off. Not too late, but still later than he was used to getting home.

Luffy pulled out his house keys as he ran up the porch stairs, not even getting the key in the door hole before it swung open and his very concerned looking brothers stared out at him. He stared back and forced a small smile in an attempt to dissipate their moods.

”Luffy-“

”Do you know what time it is!”

”Like...10:05...I’m not out past my curfew, you can’t get mad at me!” The youngest brother slid past the two oldest, removing his shoes and hanging his key chain on one of the hooks next to the door.

”But you’re never out this late!” Sabo exclaimed, and Ace nodded in agreement. “You had your poor family worried sick! Little Luffy, all alone in the cold and dark, all helpless-“

”Yeah right, you know I can take care of myself-“

”Your supper was getting cold so I ate it.” Ace admitted, but not really in an apologetic tone. “You didn’t miss out though, tonight was meat loaf night.”

”I ate dinner at Zoro’s.” At this point they had all made their way upstairs, and Luffy was standing in front of his bedroom door, ready to put on his night clothes, brush his teeth and go the fuck to bed. 

“What did you have? Virgin blood-!”

”Ace, that’s very rude! Mr. Dracule is not a vampire!”

”He sleeps in a coffin and I’ve only ever seen him out at night! That screams blood sucker!”

”You just watch too much horror movies.”

”They’re Marco’s favorite-“

”I’m ready to go to bed now.” Luffy loved his brothers, he really did. They had been inseparable since childhood, and there was practically nothing that could tear them apart. They had been through hell and back together, had helped each other through whatever hardships life threw at them.

But Luffy did not love having to stand outside his bedroom this late, listening to his brothers argue about the possibility of his best friends dad being a creature of the night, when they had to roll out of bed at seven o’clock in the morning. They could stay up as late as they wanted, he didn’t care. But he was going to bed.

Ace and Sabo only glanced at each other, shoving and playfully teasing one another for keeping Luffy awake before giving their younger brother a goodnight hug and slipping off to their own rooms. Luffy sighed in relief and finally went into his room, flicking on the light and immediately tearing off his clothes to get ready to sleep.

As he stood in the bathroom, brushing his teeth and trying to figure out if he had to go or not, Luffy thought about tomorrow. He’d be back at work, and that meant seeing Tattoo Guy. He was more than ready for it to be morning.


End file.
